


Kasimir Bewitched

by BoyMother



Category: Original Work
Genre: Beauty and the Beast Elements, Blood, Blood Drinking, Gay, Human/Monster Romance, Human/Vampire Relationship, M/M, Monsters, Spiders, Stockholm Syndrome, Vampire Sex, Vampires, Werewolves, femboy, peasant boy - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-14
Updated: 2021-01-05
Packaged: 2021-03-08 21:22:14
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,236
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27013453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BoyMother/pseuds/BoyMother
Summary: A faithful peasant boy finds himself in the clutches of a vampire lord. Through his struggles to escape, he only sinks deeper into the unholy world of the Night Kin.
Comments: 8
Kudos: 31





	1. Caught in Mountain Pass

**Author's Note:**

> A Short Opening Teaser

“Leave now, beast, or I will leave your body to rot here and bring your skewered head with me as a trophy!” Kasimir hurled threats at the creature with as much ferocity as he could muster. He was not unconvincing, his words were backed by real emotion. The struggle to survive throbbed throughout his body, every muscle tensed like a mousetrap, full of potential to release a killing blow. His hair whipped around his head like the halo of a dark angel in the wind. The beast he was staring down bared the startling white of its fangs and he did just the same.  
“Well? Come at me! I’m aching to wipe an evil stain like you from the face of this world!” He screamed again. He was relying on these words, praying that they might turn the beast away. Despite his ferocious intent, he knew he had not the body or skill to back it up. His threats were full-throated, but they came from a mere peasant boy, barely a handful of years past adolescence. His threadbare clothing clung to his small and scrawny frame, soaked from the storm. If it came to blows, he would no doubt put all his effort towards inflicting righteous punishment on this hellish fiend, but it would be his last act in this world. He had known trained knights to have been defeated by such beasts, a starved peasant stood no chance.  
The beast that cornered him on the cliffside was wolf-like, but it could not be sufficiently described in terms of earthly creatures. It was a thing from hell, the creation of a wicked demon, and it looked every bit like it. It stood three times taller than even the largest wolves of the deep woods. I could snap off the head of a human man without ever lifting its paws from the ground. Its shoulders reached high above its head, giving it a hunchback appearance. Its fur, dark brown and wet with rain, parted around the many scars crisscrossing its flesh. Kasimir could only hope to add another tally mark to its record of victims. The vicious howling from the boy was enough to surprise it, but only for a moment. It could see his chest was small and heaving like a new-born fawn. This was a prey animal whether he acted like it or not. The beast snarled and stalked forward, readying its strike.  
At that moment Kasimir knew his attempt to scare it off had failed. He mouthed a prayer under his breath asking for a happy afterlife from the Goddess, and forgiveness from his village. The sacks of grain they so desperately needed lay just a few feet away in his tent. Had he been allowed just one day more of undisturbed travel, he could have delivered the rations to his famine-stricken village and been a hero. The thought of what could have been stung him, but his tears were lost in the rain. The only thing left to do was die with righteous dignity in battle against the forces of hell.  
Then a flash of lightning struck and illuminated the steep side of the mountain for a mere moment. It was enough time for Kasimir’s eye to catch the shadow cast of something even more frightening than the beast before him. The parts of his body that had not already been chilled by the rain froze at the realization of what was watching him.  
He turned and thrust his sword to the cliffs above from where it watched, “You! Y-you demon! You monster! You wicked-”  
The beast took the opportunity and lunged at him. His body slammed down flat across the stone. The iron sword clattered away and the dull thud of his head hitting the ground reverberated in his ears for a moment before all faded to black. But as he lay there dying, he felt the foul gaze upon him. The foul gaze of the servant of hell, tormenter of his people, and lord of the mountain. He felt the hungry gaze of the vampire.


	2. The Vampire's Bargain

Kasimir did not die in the mountain pass, of course, or else there would be no story to tell. He awoke in a room with entirely stone walls, something he had never seen back in his village. It was a plain room with no windows and only a single door. Inside was the bed in which he lay currently and a tapestry on the wall patterned with tessellating shapes in purple and black, aside from that there was nothing else. The air was cold and stale, but his body was covered in a thick blanket. He was so disoriented that he did not leave the bed upon waking, but sat up and stared dumbly at his new surroundings. There were no immediate signs of danger, but if his suspicions were correct, he could not be too cautious. When he had recalled all that he could of his last conscious moments, his encounter with the beast and the dreadful gaze of that demon, his palms grew clammy just remembering it, he creeped out of bed to investigate. The windowless room was a bit like how he’d imagine a castle dungeon would be, suffocating and dark, but he was not in dungeon shackles. He was not in his own clothing either, he noticed as his bare feet touched the cold stone floor. Where sopping wet sackcloth had once been, he now wore a simple linen shirt hanging down to his knees. Beyond a few scraps, bruises, and a mild headache, he was unharmed as well. His original clothing was nowhere to be found, as was his sword. He grabbed at his chest in realization that his relic too was missing. This troubled him most of all. The small wooden carving had rarely left his neck since he’d received it years ago. He searched the room, but there was not much to search. It simply wasn’t there. It was a holy symbol, a protective force, and he needed it now more than ever. The thing that he’d seen watching him on the cliffs, though he could only make out it’s general shadow and red eyes in the rain, he was sure of what it was: a vampire. A demon made of immortal flesh in the mortal realm. The foul predator of humanity, death given form. The peasant folk of this region had no shortage of stories describing the wicked power of the vampire. To hear the mother talk to their children, one might think vampires lurked behind every tree and rock in the lands just beyond village territory. But that was just the overuse of a monster tale to frighten children. Peasants went freely to and from the surroundings woods with fear of nothing save the wild boar and occasional wolf. But the mountain pass to the East was different. It was avoided at all costs if possible, and even warriors held their breath when they passed through. This vampire of the eastern mountains was no child’s tale. It was a real threat that weighed on the minds of all mortals in the region. Though encounters were rare, elders would tell memories of terror when the hungry vampires devoured entire villages in a single night. And those unconvinced few, who went foolishly searching in the mountains, seeking fame or simply trying to prove a point, unfailingly vanished, never to return. Kasimir himself was not one of these fools. His faith in the Goddess was strong and he knew well to avoid the forces of hell. But the famine in his village demanded haste. There was no time to go around the mountains. The mountain pass had seemed like a risk worth taking. After all, plenty who stayed on the path and made haste crossed through unharmed. But despite his faith, the Goddess did not grant him fortune. Caught in a storm, hunted by a beast, and now...brought here, to what he was sure could only be the fabled vampire’s lair. There was little doubt in his mind that this room was a part of the hidden mountain fortress where the vampire lurked. What he truly did not know was why he had been allowed to live to see it. If the wolf beast had not killed him, surely the watching vampire would have used his unconscious body to sate its blood thirst.   
The creak of wood echoed somewhere beyond the door and Kasimir froze, eyes fixed on the entrance to the room. His body tensed to leap in action, but he knew it was a hopeless situation. He could neither run without a direction to flee to nor fight without a weapon. Perhaps that was why he was alive, so the vampire could have the cruel satisfaction of inspiring terror in its conscious victim. Yet, the door did not budge. Kasimir stood frozen in place, listening for even the tiniest indication of something beyond the room, lying in wait for him. But there was no sound or motion, besides the “THUMP THUMP THUMP” of his heart. The vampire would come for him, he was sure of it. It was just a matter of when. And every moment he spent cowering in this room was one less moment he had to escape. That thought spurred him into action. He slowly opened the door, anticipating an unholy monster to appear before him at any moment. But the door only opened to a long hallway, similarly made of the same plain stonework as the room. There were lit torches, which as signs of life might have been encouraging in other contexts. The torches were only lit near where he stood, so the hallway faded into black, impenetrable by the human eyes. The horrific vision that had been standing outside the door now moved to the end of the hall, waiting in the darkness to welcome Kasimir into its gnashing teeth. Still, it was the only way to go. He forced himself onward.   
More torches burst into flames all on their own as he approached, while the ones he left behind were similarly extinguished, so that only the section of hall he was in was lit at any given time. Eventually he could no longer see ahead of him nor back from where he came. At other times of fear or distress, he would quote prayers of the Goddess, but as he tried to mutter them now, he fumbled the verses. He was unable to think about anything beyond immediate survival. The agonizing journey continued step by step through the halls of the Vampire lair, and each footstep brought with it progressively more and more frightening ideas. Maybe it was hunting him… maybe he was being watched right now… maybe he was dead and this was his personal hell: an eternal hallway of terror.   
But the hallway was not eternal. It eventually came to end. Kasimir found himself stepping out into something like the abandoned grand lobby of a noble’s palace. A large staircase took up most of the room, leading to a second floor balcony from which several more spiraling staircases sprouted upward. The room was mostly plain stone, like the room and the hallway, with the exception of a few more decorative tapestries hanging from the second floor balcony. Though most were torn and all were faded, the woven images were still preserved in several. One depicted a figure with great black wings dwarfing his body, another had a figure surrounded by huge wolves like the monster Kasimir had encountered, still another depicted an old woman with bright red streams flowing from her fingertips. Had this been a leisurely expedition through an abandoned castle, Kasimir might have taken more time to explore such decor. But the tapestries got only a passing glance from him. He was more focused on the immense red doors at the base of the stairs. He could tell they led outside from the faint sound wind howling through the mountains. A spark of optimism flashed in his mind. He might actually be able to escape! He would get outside and he would run for as long as he could. He would make his way through the mountains and find his way back to the village. He would return home as a legend! The one who was abducted into the Vampire’s lair and lived to tell the tale! Cold wind burst in as he slowly pushed the doors open. Outside it was dark, but the sun was coming up on the horizon. He would be traveling by daylight soon enough.  
But before he could take even one step outside, he was stopped in his tracks. Somehow, he could simply feel that he was no longer alone. That same gaze was as sensual on the back of his neck as was the wind in his face. He turned from the view of the mountains back to the lobby and nearly screamed. Atop the staircase, a dark figure loomed, his face obscured by shadow, but the glow of his yellow eyes was strikingly clear. He was maybe seven or eight feet tall, his enormous body cloaked in black. Kasimir did not know if he was too afraid to move, or if he was paralyzed under some dark spell. Either way, he did nothing but stand in the doorway and stare back at the vampire before him.  
“How rude of you. Mere hours after your arrival you are already sneaking away. Perhaps I should have just let Zvera eat you.” His voice was low and gravely, but with characteristically human sardonic tone. Kasimir thought such a way of speaking was inappropriate for such an inhuman creature, but such thoughts were probably a waste of his last moments of life.   
“Well, Speak boy. Defend yourself.” The Vampire said, and suddenly Kasimir had possession of his voice again.   
“The Goddess is with me, demon. I am… not afraid.” It was a lie and it was clear in his trembling.   
“Religious ah, I see. I had hoped otherwise when I found this.” The Vampire held out his necklace out in a clawed hand. He threw it from the top of the stairs and the wooden idol pendant clattered near Kasimir’s feet.  
“Go on, pick it up. Though I assure you, your Goddess has no powers here.”   
“The Goddess is everywhere,” Kasimir said, though it sounded more like he was convincing himself than retorting to the Vampire.  
“I see. Well, pick it up then. It is yours after all. I will return your clothing as well if you wish, not that anyone should be wearing those rags.”   
Kasimir did not budge. He wanted turn and run, just to see how far he could get before he was struck down. Maybe the sun would rise and the daylight would save him. But he knew that could never work. He was caught now. His fate was sealed. He had been foolish to think he could escape. With sober sense he faced the Vampire, he would die with honor and go to be with the Goddess.  
“Petrified hm? If you can at least shut the doors, I am not one for natural light.”  
Kasimir burst, “Go ahead and make your move demon! I am not afraid!”   
Though his face was barely visible in the dark, Kasimir could feel the anger in his tone. His voice, like his image and general aura, radiated power, “I’m not going to kill you, boy!”   
“You are a vampire are you not? A demon from hell! You exist to torture good mortal souls and feed from their essence. You have committed vile acts against my ancestors and I-”  
“Spare me the lecture, please. I assure you I am already well aware of anything a peasant boy could hope to tell.” The vampire extended one arm out of his cloak and made a strange gesture towards Kasimir. Wind blew into the room all of a sudden, not coming from outside, but from the vampire himself. The gust slammed the doors shut, cutting off Kasimir's slightest hopes of escape. “Now please, we have a deal to strike.”   
“Y-You cannot tempt me.”   
“Oh really? Take a look.”   
A bright yellow flame burst to life in his hand, then jumped into the air and floated down to the bottom of the staircase where it illuminated a small horse cart, rolling as if by a will of its own, into the spotlight. In the cart was a mountain of food. Not only sacks of grain and vegetables, but bread and meats too. Kasimir saw a few of what looked like cakes. His stomach ached for sustenance. Even in the lair of the ultimate evil, he could not ignore hunger.   
“I know your people are starving, Kasimir.”  
“How do you know that? How do you know my name?”   
“Am I an all-powerful demon or not, boy? Now pay attention. This food, all of it will be taken down to your little village if you wish.”   
Kasimir’s brain raced to solve whatever trick this vampire was playing, but he could not make sense of it.   
“Why?”   
The vampire ignored his question, “I have vast storerooms filled wine, cheese, all sorts of preserves. My servants can procure bread and harvest in bounties large enough to feed ten villages. I offer you not just this cart to feed your people, but enough to make them fat and content. All this I will do in-”  
“Whatever trap you are setting, I will not fall for it!”   
“Interrupting? A peasant interrupting a vampire? You have no idea how lucky you are, boy. I offer to feed your starving people and you reject me?”  
“Charity offered by the wicked is no charity at all.”   
The Vampire groaned, “Did some self-righteous monk teach you that verse? Fine. Have it your way. Return to your village and starve.”   
With a flick of his fingers, the cart of food began to recede into the darkness again. Kasimir fought off the animal impulse to chase after it. He was so hungry.   
“Your poor mother and sisters. I hope you outlast them. Someone will have to dig their pauper’s graves.”  
Kasimir saw the grim vision clearly in his mind. His heart sank like a stone. Surely there was something he could do. But the village was already in a dire situation when he was sent to trade for a few measly sacks of grain. With Winter fast-approaching...what else could be done?   
“What do you want?” he spat out.   
The vampire seemed pleased, something that only made him more uneasy.  
“I see. So you understand this is a deal?”  
“Of course, it is. Now name your price. You want blood? Sacrifices?”   
“I will provide a continued flow of food to your people, and in return you will not leave this place. These stone walls will become your home and I shall become your master.”   
Once again, Kasimir struggled to understand what the vampire could possibly be scheming. It didn’t add up. Even if he was just going to devour him, why would he do it for just one boy’s worth of flesh and blood? And why entrap him within the castle? Couldn’t he just strike him down right there at the door? Why make a deal at all?   
“The sun will rise soon and I will return to my private chambers. You do not have long to decide, boy.”   
“H-How do I know you will keep your word? How do I know you won’t just kill me and let my family starve?”   
“You don’t.” The vampire spoke with a cold brevity, “But you don’t have much choice do you? I advise you to take the offer before I change my mind.”   
Kasimir could not believe what he was doing, but there was no other choice. He tried to think of his sister eating fancy pastries around a warm fire, his mother and neighbors saved from traveling on the dangerous road to beg.   
“Fine. I… I will stay within the walls. But not a single person in my village should go hungry, understand?”   
“You are in no position to be making demands, but yes, rest assured they will be fed.”   
The cart of food was pulled by an invisible force out of the room, presumably to be transported down the mountains by some evil magic. Despite all that had occured, Kasimir felt relived. He would surely die here, but he would die a martyr. He was a hero! Even if he was the only one who knew. Pride swelled up in him even as he felt the cold stare of the vampire on him. “May the Goddess see my deed.” He muttered to himself, picking up his pendent from the floor.   
“Do as you like now, but remember our deal. Your people live only so long as you stay within these walls.”  
“What do you mean...do as I like?”   
“Do what you want. I do not care. Entertain yourself. Judunda will dress you in the evening.”   
“Judu… what? Who?”  
“I must retire now. If you have nothing else to do, at least try and become at ease here. Your fearful trembling is distracting.”   
Kasimir had not even been aware of his shaking legs until then. He wanted to more information. He wanted to know what scheme this vampire had for him. But as the vampire’s silhouette melted into shadow, he was left as alone and confused as he had been when he woke up here.  
Clutching his pendent, he hoped that he had made the right choice.


	3. The Tailor

The rest of that day was sleepless. How could he possibly sleep in a place like this! A vampire, the crown evil of all his people’s myths, had appeared before him and had done nothing. Absolutely nothing! He was left in this empty castle to await whatever fate the world so frustratingly refused to reveal to him. So, after a long moment of utter bafflement and anxiety, he crept back towards the room he’d awoke in, crawled into the bed, and stared at the door for hours as thoughts tumbled over and over in his head. Should the vampire keep his word and send food, his people would be saved! But how could he trust a vampire? He was torn between indulging in hope and trusting the enemy. In the end, he decided that it was true, the vampire would send food to his village. Not only because if it wasn’t true, he’d made a bargain in vain, but also because he couldn’t stand the thought of his mother and sisters and neighbors succumbing to starvation. So, if the deal was legitimate, why had it been made? What on earth could a vampire want with him? The history of his village was filled with the most cruel and awful tales of what the vampire of the mountains did to the people of the valley. Many believed the demon to be dead, since no great slaughter had occured since the time of their grandfathers’. But now Kasimir knew that he was in fact alive and the absence of attacks was only evidence that he was planning his next evil deed. Kasimir feared he was being used for such a deed, but he could not think of any malicious plot that would need him kept alive in this castle.  
Kasimir spun the wheels in his brain until he was delirious from lack of sleep and anxiety and stress. Though it was day, the windowless walls of the castle kept it dark, so he was sorely tempted to lay down his head and rest. But he did not. He forced himself to remain alert and waited… for… whatever would happen to him next, he supposed. That was the worst part of all this. He was utterly powerless. He could do nothing but wait.   
By the time evening came, Kasimir was nodding off every few minutes, barely able to sort his panicked fantasies of doom from reality. That is why he thought he might be having a nightmare when the door to his room was suddenly pushed open.   
“Clang!” went the door’s knocker against the wall. It had been thrown open by the beast that now completely filled the doorway. Shaggy and scarred, the dire wolf beast Kasimir had faced off with in the storm now stared him down in the bed. He scrambled back against the bedframe, grabbing the sheets for a sword that was not there. But the beast did not move. It merely stood and stared at him. When the animal panic left his head, he spat out “Stay away, beast!” An empty threat. If the beast wanted to rend his flesh between its jaws, there was nothing he could do to stop it. But still it waited, merely snorting in response, as if waiting for something.   
“What are you? A demon? Do you work for the vampire?” He said, not expect a response. No response was given. Just a monster staring him down impatiently. It then turned and walked a bit away down the hall, before looking back to Kasimir with low growl.   
“You want… me to follow?” He said, mostly to himself.   
The beast swug its head up and down, as if nodding.   
Kasimir, not wanting to be eaten, decided it was probably best to do as this thing wished. Perhaps it would lead him to answers, though its presence only left him with more questions. Was this a demon? Or a just a beast? Did it work for the vampire? Is it intelligent? No answers for these were had as he followed several paces behind it down the hall.   
He was still dressed in the plain gown, barefoot, and with only his idol necklace. He clutched it as the wolf led them through the maze of hallways and staircases. He could not protect himself now, he would have to depend on the Goddess.   
“Can you understand me?” He asked the beast.   
Its ears twitched and it growled, which he could not interpret. He decided to give up his questioning for now and focus on where this thing might be taking him. Perhaps it would lead him to a dining hall where it would feast upon him, or a dungeon where he would be tortured in the cruelest ways. Perhaps that was why the vampire kept him alive, merely to torture him.   
But no, the beast did not eat him and he was not brought to a stockade. The beast arrived at another ordinary door and stopped, glancing at Kasimir and then to the door.   
“You want me to go inside?” He asked. Again, the wolf nodded. Then it turned and bounded off down the hall again, leaving him alone and still bewildered.   
Mysteries came one after another in this place. Whatever lay beyond this door was just the newest. He would probably get more information by entering, like the beast had seemed to command him to do, but then again, why should he go on exploring this dreadful place? Why not just turn around and go back to the room he’d woken up in. He could stay in bed all day and night and withhold from the vampire any pleasure of toying with him. He considered it and nearly turned right around, but he wasn’t sure if he even remembered the way back to the room. Plus, there was a portion of him that accepted all the danger and horror of this situation as real, but could not help but generate a little excitement at what mysteries would unfold. He would surely perish in these lonely halls, which was a tragic fate, yes, but more eventful than any of his days in the village. He kept this impulse of excitement tucked away behind his more rational brain, but it could slip out now and then, and so it did. He stepped forward to the door.  
He did not know what to expect on the other side but he was bracing for the worst. Perhaps a pit full of skeletons? A torture chamber? More wild beasts? But as he slowly stepped into the room, he saw that it was nothing more than a humble sewing room. An empty room of tables littered with spools and needles, looms with half finished weaving, and at least a dozen mirrors. Kasimir was confused. This was not what he was expecting. It was a little anticlimactic in all honesty. Why would he have been brought here? He was beginning to wonder if he’d only imagined intelligence in the beast and followed it here erroneously. But no, the Vampire had mentioned something… someone he was meant to see… but there was no one in the room? Perhaps a maid who was absent? And then came the voice of a stranger, not from around or behind, but from above.  
“You are the rescued peasant, I presume?”   
Kasimir looked up and would have screamed had shock not sucked the voice right out of him. He stood frozen in place as he looked into the returning stare of a massive spider. Two enormous orbs, each larger than Kasimir’s fist, shone in the dark with an alien consciousness. Below them large mouthparts attached to dagger-like fangs quivered. Around them a collection of long grey legs gracefully clung to the walls, moving the enormous arachnid in a slow descent towards the petrified boy below it.   
When it came close enough that it could have snatched him up Kasimir’s voice suddenly returned and he screamed. He screamed and fell on his ass, limbs flinging themselves about to move him anywhere away from the spider.   
“Oh calm yourself, I was excited to hear we would have company, at least be polite and pull yourself together,” the spider spoke. It spoke in a quiet voice with an accent totally unfamiliar to Kasimir. It was a relaxing, even melodious, voice. Alone it might have even been relaxing, but it did nothing to sooth Kasimir of the terror inspired by the creature itself. The spider held itself still above Kasimir, looking down on him with those dark glassy orbs. Kasimir managed to get to his feet and somehow held himself still. This thing, this unholy bug of monstrous size was talking to him and it did not seem hostile. Those were only the thoughts of his rational brain which fought against the powerful surge of his revolting instinct. The wolf beast he could handle, the vampire unnerved him, but neither had the same effect on him as the alien face and myriad limbs of this spider. The sight of it enlivened a primal fear that he fought hard to subdue. Only when he had one hand on the door, ready to flee, did he regain control.   
“Wh-what are you?” He spat out. He had to look down at the floor, unable to look directly at the thing.  
“Are you alright? I’m not going to harm you, I only need to take your measurements.” It’s voice was human enough that Kasimir could calm himself a bit by focusing on it. Though he continued to keep his eyes averted.   
“Well, don’t be disrespectful. Eye contact is only polite.” The spider said.  
“What are you? A demon?” He said again, refusing to look up.  
There was a pause and then, in an annoyed tone, a response, “I am a spider. Have you not ever seen a spider, human?”  
“I… I have seen spiders. Spiders do not fill half a room.”   
“Well, I am a bit different then. But I am a spider still.”  
“You are a demon, I think… like the beast out there. This castle must be full of demons.”  
“I am not a demon, you ignorant peasant!” The spider hissed in a flash of anger. The outburst made Kasimir jump and look upon it’s face, making his stomach turn. Again he turned his face away.   
“I am Judunda,” the spider continued, more calmly this time, “I was born an ordinary spider and made a servant of Lord Dragoslav. I am not a demon and I am not going to harm you. I am just a tailor and I would like to take your measurements without any more fuss. Please.”  
“Dragoslav?” Kasimir wondered out loud.  
“The vampire lord of this castle, of course. How do you not even know the name of the man who took you in?”   
“He’s not a man. And he did not take me in, he has kidnapped me.”   
“Hmm, I see. Well, whatever you think of Dragoslav, you are here now and you are in need of clothing.” The spider said, inching closer to the boy with a measuring tape in his front most legs.  
“I have clothing.”   
“You mean the mud caked rags Dragoslav gave me? Yes, I tried to work with them, but they were really just worn sackcloth. Hardly appropriate garments at all. I will simply tailor some of the master’s clothing. Now, arms up and out.”   
Kasimir obeyed, though not without hesistation. He hated this feeling of helplessness. He was surrounded by strange and dangerous beings keeping him captive, giving him orders, and throwing his clothes away. Dying at the hands of a vampire was heroic and brief, whatever all this was, it was ongoing and patronizing, and the threat of death still loomed through it all. Even as he let the spider take measurements of his arms and waist and hips, his legs were tensed to bolt at a moment’s notice. He could not help but shiver as the stiff leg hairs brushed over his skin. His eyes were clenched shut the whole time.  
“There. Was that so awful you cannot even look at me? I apologize for having such an offensive appearance to you.” The spider said when it had finished. It’s body language and face (if it could be said to even have a face) were inhuman and unreadable, but it spoke in tones that clearly conveyed emotion. It’s harsh sarcasm was not unheard by Kasimir. Much as he wanted to think of this being as a demon with purely evil intent, its speech was far too human. Kasimir found that his righteous disgust was fading.  
“I-I’m sorry. I just… Spiders frighten me… even the little ones.”   
“You are frightened by a being smaller than your hand? Are you frightened by mice as well?” The spider said as it dug through a cabinet of old clothing.  
“Well, no. But-“  
“I see. I will never understand humans. Anyways, you are a male, correct?”  
Kasimir was caught off guard by the question. “Am I male? Yes, I’m a man! Can you really not tell human men and women apart?”   
“Hmm, I thought I could. But your measurements are… a bit odd. Scrawny little youngling with wide hips and weak shoulders. There will have to be more alterations than I expected.”   
“I am a grown man, beleive it or not! I wouldn’t expect an overgrown bug to know anything about that.”  
“Ah, yes, I can see I’ve touched a nerve. Still, I might expect a grown man not to cower like a child.”   
“I am not cowering!”   
“You are.”  
“I am not!”  
“Then open your eyes and look at me, peasant.”   
Kasimir should have seen that one coming. He had no choice, his pride as a man was on the line. He opened his eyes and looked to the spider, who was draping several cuts of cloth and fine clothes over its leg, while its pedapalps wound up its measuring tape. The way it used its many limbs to accomplish several tasks at once might have been impressive had it not been so unnerving. Too many moving parts for Kasimir’s taste. He could not hide the grimace on his face.  
“Oh don’t make such an ugly face. Really, I cannot be that awful.” The spider said. He was confused at how it could see his face while its faced the cabinet, but then he noticed the other dark eyes hidden among the hair all around its head. “If you really can’t stand it, you can go. I thought some company would be nice, but I suppose I was being foolishly optimistic. Go on back to your room. I have what I need. I’ll have Zvera bring you the outfits when they are done and save you the ordeal of having to be near me again.” Clearly the spider was hurt. Strangely, Kasimir felt guilt tug at the back of his mind. It wasn’t enough to overcome his still strong primal revulsion, but it was present nonetheless.   
Kasimir was halfway out of the door when the spider spoke again, “oh! And peasant, what is you name?”  
“Ah… I am Kasimir.” He said.  
“I see. Welcome to the castle, Kasimir. I assure you, frightened as you might be, you won’t be harmed here.”  
“Thanks… that is uh, good to know.”  
The spider turned back to its work but something in Kasimir made him spit out one last question,  
“What… what was it you said your name was?”  
“My name? I am Judunda servant of Dragoslav. Thank you for asking.”  
“Right. Uh, I guess… you’re welcome, Judunda.”  
The spider’s expression, for as much as it could be said to have an expression, seemed to change at that. Just a twitch of the pedapalps, a tilt of the fangs, and perhaps it was all Kasimir’s imagination, but it seemed almost like a smile.


End file.
